Friday, March 1, 2013

Co-Teaching

In
working in different schools over the years I have seen co-teaching models were
both highly successful and unsuccessful. From the outsiders perspective looking
in on these classrooms, so much, it seemed, had to do with the personalities and
personal relationships between the co-teachers. If the personalities meshed, it
was obvious that they respected each other, enjoyed planning and teaching
together and were able to communicate quickly and easy to adjust instruction to
meet the needs of the learners. In referring to eight components of the
co-teaching relationships (Gately
& Gately, Jr., 2001), these successful groups were able to more easily
move to the collaborative stage within each of the components, simply because they
got along and enjoyed working together. Not to say that two teachers who get
along will automatically be successful, collaborative co-teachers, but when you
have a positive relationship and enjoy working together, the willingness to put
the work in to becoming successful co-teachers in greatly increased.

In
having witnessed successful co-taught classrooms, in which general and special
education teachers not only planned and implemented instruction, but differentiated
for the needs of all students, I am a big proponent for this model. In these
successful co-taught classrooms, it was not apparent which students were
special education students, or which students were completing alternative
assessments. Both teachers supported all students and moved freely around the room
helping students, providing instruction and accommodating as needed.

As
school curricula is upgraded for the 21st century, a co-teaching
model would be a benefit for students. Some of the essential 21st
century skills include collaboration and communication. These are very
challenging skills for students. Special education and general education
teachers, while teaching together, are provided the opportunity to model these
skills for students on a daily basis. In addition, a curriculum that integrates
21st century skills is often student-centered and project-based. The
additional supports that are provided in a co-taught classroom (for both the students
and the teachers) help with the successful implementation of this type of
curriculum.

As
they say, “the best defense is a good offense”. For a school leader, in
thinking about implementing co-teaching with in a school, the administrator
should take great care in know the personalities, strengths and weaknesses of
his or her teaching staff. Establishing teams of teachers that will mesh well
will be important in setting up these teams for success down the road.
Supervising and evaluating these teams would present a challenge for school
administrators who include student data as a component in individual teacher
evaluations. One strategy, might to evaluate the co-teachers as both a team
(using student data and collaboration strategies) and individually (using
observed instructional strategies and professional growth).